Episode 2-a. The City Where Night Never Comes, Tebris. (8)

Shadows lurk beneath the brilliant lights. Wherever there is light, there must also be darkness. And that holds ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠true even in this city where night never falls, adorned with dazzling buildings and endless sunlight and glowing lamps that seem like they'll go on forever.

If there's a radiant landscape on the surface, then deep underground in the hidden brothels, a quiet shadow settles in. In the end, they had uncovered the secret that had persisted for a hundred years—a blessing and a curse. Ancient ruins slumbering beneath the city, infested by black mages up to who-knows-what, were the shadows gnawing away at the city.

They couldn't reach the deepest part, so no one knew exactly what they were doing.

"Ah... I really almost died."

At least, nothing in this city was as suspicious as the black mages scheming underground, so that had to be the prime suspect.

As he glanced at his still-throbbing arms, a voice called out.

"Finally awake, you weak little punk? How are we supposed to do anything if you sleep a whole day away when time's running out?"

""He's up!""

Three people surrounded him, sprawled on the bed.

"Yeah... my arms still hurt like hell. Did you go see the mayor?"

If a full day had passed like Horn said, it was now the night of the seventh day or morning of the eighth. That meant the brothel's movements might start looking suspicious.

"Yeah, we passed on the message. Explained the location with the evidence, and he looked shocked but said he'd assemble a subjugation team. We've been keeping an eye on the brothel while waiting for you to wake up."

Fortunately, Horn and Aberly had handled things well while he was out.

"Ah, thanks for the hard work. Hmm. But some half-assed subjugation team won't cut it. You think any big shots will come to help?"

"Not our problem. That's for them to figure out. Besides, no unusual movements yet, so we're good for now."

"Yeah... true."

At least things seemed to be going smoothly, so he dropped his aching arms onto the bed with a thud and sighed. Their role was done, for now. Joining a subjugation team and racking up merits was ridiculous at their level. Breaking through entrenched black mages and seizing whatever was inside? Impossible for them.

He was half-convinced the prophetic letter hadn't led them here expecting full resolution. Unknown gimmicks in ancient ruins, hundreds of black mages at least—that wasn't prophecy; it'd be the ravings of a senile ancient.

Pushing greedily back in might really get them killed. Their low-tier black mages' spells had melted his arms, knocking him out for a full day. That said it all.

"More importantly, the mayor said to come to his mansion once you're up for your first-discovery reward. Pick one from the treasury or a city treasure."

"Ah, right. That's the important part."

That was probably the best they ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠could hope for—reward for uncovering the city's undiscovered secret.

"Going right away?"

"Want to, but waiting for Aberly to get back."

"Yeah, he'll be here soon."

They all flopped onto the bed, waiting for Aberly.

The door burst open.

"Ah... A-Ain. Y-You're finally awake...?"

"Yeah, pack up. Load everything on the carriage, grab the reward from the mayor's place, then head straight out of the city."

"Ah, finally... L-Let's go quick...!"

On the morning of the eighth day, he decided to leave a bit earlier than the deadline. The accumulated fatigue from nonstop hustling was unknown and worrisome.

"Hm, not waiting for the subjugation team to finish?"

"Who knows when that'll end. Unless a grand mage shows up, it'll take over a month. Even gathering reinforcements from nearby cities takes time."

"Ah, yeah, makes sense."

Waiting for scraps after subjugation would just tie their feet until the curse lifted—pure time waste. The makeshift team of randos would just die entering. A proper team needed time to form, who knew how long.

So.

"We'll grab our discovery treasure and bail fast. If you're that bummed, better rest in a nearby city and come back for scraps later."

"Yeah, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠pack up then."

""Yessir~""

They loaded their unpacked gear onto the carriage and headed to the mayor's mansion.

Upon arrival.

"Ah, the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠city's heroes! Care for some tea? And your arms—okay? Heard you were badly hurt."

"I'm fine. You said come once I woke up, Mayor."

Soldiers bustled inside the mansion, where a middle-aged man greeted them warmly.

"Right, first discoverers deserve reward. 5 million dera or one treasure from the vault—your pick."

5 million dera would make them instant rich. Enough for commoners to live leisurely forever without working.

But.

"Then... I'd like to see the treasure vault first."

"Of course! Escort them to the vault!"

To him, items useful for his journey outweighed money.

The vault was as dazzling as the city.

"Holy shit."

"Pretty..."

"Mama..."

"Yeah."

Evidently raking in cash, treasures glittered temptingly everywhere.

"Pick one you want."

"Ah, thanks..."

The escort soldier handed a ledger, and they wandered the vault, flipping through the treasure list.

"Punk, I want that axe."

"No."

"Why, you little shit. I want it."

"Elder. Get a grip."

Horn, uncharacteristically drooling, eyed things wildly.

"Ah, Ain... I want that ancient reagent over there, effects unknown..."

"You think?"

"N-Not?"

"One item only, and a mystery reagent? What for?"

Aberly eyed pricey experiment materials hungrily.

"Ain-hyung, how about that 'Heavenly Taste' biscuit?"

"Or oppa, the 'God's Tears' drink set next to it?"

"Yours sound like the dumbest picks."

""Why!""

The kids tugged his clothes, eyeing tasty-looking stuff.

He wanted to give everyone what they wanted, but only one item allowed.

So why were they acting up when he'd decided beforehand?

"As promised. To the promise."

""...Tch.""

Are they all nuts? Anyway, they'd picked something useful for the journey or for the gray.

He pored over the ledger, inspecting items.

"Not this... That one's iffy too..."

"Fussy bastard."

"Ouch... Keep that up and I'm hurt."

"Deal with it."

"..."

Horn was old enough for dementia, but preferably after the journey. Ignoring the grumbling, he kept selecting.

"Huh."

Then he spotted something odd. A lone item, no description in the ledger.

"S-Soldier. No explanation for this?"

"Which one?"

"Not in the ledger, just in the corner."

He picked it up, showing the approaching soldier, who tilted his head, then fetched an old ledger from afar.

"One moment. Items not listed are ancient or unknown-use."

"Ah, okay."

He flipped pages, found it, and smiled.

"Ah, here."

"What’s it say?"

Curious, he watched as the soldier read slowly.

"Hm, it's a mana analyzer said to be made by the ancient great sinner, Nasatya."

"...Pardon?"

The first trace of Nasatya he'd sought was this.

"The fallen Twilight Star, erased even from records as a sinner. An eccentric invention by Nasatya. But it doesn't work, so excluded from recent ledgers."

"..."

"We just store it. Useless antique."

His companions stared between him and the item in shock.

"...Any other Nasatya items in here?"

"Hm... One sec."

The soldier checked quickly, then shook his head.

"None. Only this one by that ancient."

"...Then I'll take this."

"Pardon...? It's a broken antique."

The soldier couldn't fathom choosing junk over treasures.

"This one."

"Er, noted. Closing the vault—no changes."

"Yes."

No hesitation in his voice. Instead, his lips curled up in excitement.

Horn, Aberly, and the twins poked his sides, grinning.

Found it. They hadn't lifted the curse themselves.

But they'd grasped the clue they sought, seized an item bearing the trace.

Thud—the vault door shut.

Thump-thump—his heart raced.

Time passed.

The carriage slowly left the city.

In the end, they'd only uncovered the curse, not broken it.

"Man, punk. Finding this was really..."

"Luck, bro!"

"Worth skipping snacks and drinks!"

"Hm... The r-reagents are a bit regrettable..."

Grinning, they resumed their journey.

The snowball was rolling. Someone would carry it on, make it huge, banish the darkness.

And.

"Fuck... this shit..."

"Cr-crazy... ugh..."

As the carriage exited, agony hit. Kids collapsed with yelps, out cold. Aberly frothed and retched.

Exhaustion from digging into secrets crashed at once—they were bedridden for days.